Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979

The Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 is an Act of the New South Wales Parliament.

Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979
Parliament of New South Wales
Long title An Act to institute a system of environmental planning and assessment for the State of New South Wales.
Citation	Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (NSW)
Passed by	Parliament of New South Wales
Passed	22 November 1979
Assented to by	Governor Roden Cutler
Assented to	21 December 1979
Administered by	Department of Planning and Environment
Legislative history
Bill title	Environmental Planning and Assessment Bill 1979
Introduced by	William Haig
Introduced	13 November 1979
Status: Amended

History

In September 2025, Chris Minns' Labor government signalled their intention to significantly amend the legislation, with the legislation now including the government's existing Housing Delivery Authority and a new Development Coordination Authority.^[1]

Controversy over part 3A

The Act gained considerable controversy with the introduction of section 3A that effectively allowed the Planning Minister to declare a project as of "State significance" and assume direct approval delegation.^[2] Although it was introduced to streamline the planning process and fast track the assessment of large infrastructure projects, a public perception of its misuse was a significant factor in the defeat of the Keneally government.^{[original research?]}

See also

• Environment of Australia
• Environmental planning